EAST LIVERPOOL – Park systems that receive little or no government funding are reliant on their constituents for quality-of-life improvements to their public lands, and that is also the case with the City of Chester.
Park board officials recently took the first step in making Chester City Park more inclusive to special needs visitors by adding a two-person swing set to its inventory. Cafe Chairs
The latest addition of a TFH swing set was the result of a New Cumberland family’s visit to Chester City Park. While 10-year-old Kirah Creese loves to swing, her parents found none of the local parks had swings that could accommodate her.
According to Susan Hineman of the Chester Park Board, local businesswomen Dawn (Hissam) Myers and her mother Connie Hissam sprang into action and designed a scratch-off lotto ticket basket to fund acquisition of the full-support swing for the parks, selling the tickets at Connie’s Corner restaurant as well as the city’s recent Fourth of July festivities.
Ultimately, after Sherry Pease of H&F (Murray) Trucking overheard the conversation, she donated the swing in the memory of her father, “Bud” Murray. So the money from the scratch-off basket then was re-earmarked for the swing’s frame plus an additional regular adult swing, which was added so guardians could sit next to their swinging child.
This full support swing includes a safety harness and strap to ensure proper body positioning and ample upper body support for riders like Kirah, who has Down’s Syndrome, that may either have low muscle tone or have a sensory processing disorder.
Kirah’s mother, Heather, was very appreciative of the addition. She explained, “this swing is the perfect size for a special needs kid of her six. We have several children in our area with different disabilities, (and) it is amazing for the recognition of those kids and their needs to be part of the community.”
Park board President Don Murray explained several more benches were added to the park campus by local businesses and social organizations through donations. Hancock County Savings Bank sponsored three benches, while the following donors added one more each: the Chester Volunteer Fire Department, Bob Milby Veterans of Foreign Wars’ chapter, American Legion Post 121 and Arner Funeral Home.
Hineman said that Murray also purchased a bench in memory of Timmy Hughes, a 17-year-old volunteer who passed away in October 2022 and “dedicated his time to make the city park a more beautiful place.”
The park board would like to continue expanding special needs offering at Chester City Park by adding more equipment to make their playground all-inclusive in the spring.
All of that takes money, so Hineman asks that any donations either be sent to Chester City Park, 600 Indiana Ave., Chester, WV 26034. She asks that if anyone has special projects for the money, note those on the check memo line.
Hineman, who is the park board’s secretary/treasurer, also can be reached at 330-843-3215.
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